Students Lobby For Hedgehog Ownership

Do you remember your first pet as a child? Odds are it was a starter or “pocket pet” of some sort –for children not quite mature enough to assume full responsibility for larger, higher maintenance animals.

Common pocket pets include small mammals such as hamsters, gerbils, ferrets, mice, rats and guinea pigs. Each has simple, yet specific housing and feeding requirements which can help children learn basic pet care at a formative age.

But one pocket species is notoriously missing from this list…the hedgehog – an adorable, quilled creature that resembles a miniature porcupine but with soft bristles. An “insectivore”, the African Pygmy hedgehog eats beetles, other bugs, and is (somewhat) hypoallergenic compared to fur bearing rodents. I was surprised to learn Pennsylvania is one of just six states to ban hedgehogs as pets.

So why am I writing about a pet you can’t own?

The story of a gutsy group of Allentown fifth graders campaigning to reverse the state’s ban on hedgehogs caught my attention just as I finished up the column on how parents teach us to respect animals. After speaking with their teacher, Rebecca Bodnar, I was hooked.

These kids really did their homework and weren’t taking “no” for an answer. They were given approval for a classroom pet by the school principal back in April. Several in the class did not have a pet at home, or not one they could call their own. Some suffered from allergies. They felt a pet would teach them responsibility. After researching all candidates for “classroom pet’, the students settled on the hedgehog, only to learn they lived in the wrong state to own one.

Rather than throw a temper tantrum or settle for a hamster, the savvy fifth graders decided to find out why. Their systematic research put them in touch with learned scientists, state representatives, the Lehigh Valley Zoo, the mayor --- even the governor. The Pa. Game Commission’s Title 58 137.1 outlawing the species was suddenly under fire.

When the bus carrying the young lobbyists rolled into the state capitol last week (a

trip funded by the Freedom Foundation which was equally impressed by the kids’ efforts) it was not your typical tour of the General Assembly. The class, armed with research and sound arguments, presented their case to The Fish and Game Committee and other state representatives.

The students challenged the Pa. Game Commission’s claim that hedgehogs pose dangers to the balance of Pennsylvania’s wildlife by eating the eggs of nestlings and to humans as potential carriers of leptospira (found in the urine of many wild species). Native to Africa, hedgehogs requires a minimum 70 degrees to thrive and would scarcely survive Pennsylvania’s harsh winters. The likelihood of being overrun by herds of hedgehogs proliferating in the wild (which, in one statement, the PGC compared to stink bugs as a non-native species) is slim indeed.

My favorite part was the kids’ reference to The Declaration of Independence stating their rights to Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness. “We believe hedgehogs will bring us happiness”, they explained.

In response to the compelling arguments, Pa. House Representatives Jennifer Mann and Edward Staback proposed House Bill 1398 which redefines which animals are considered “exotic” in Pennsylvania thereby lifting the ban on hedgehogs. The bill is up for vote prior to the legislature’s summer break. Should it not pass, the kids have a backup plan for a second bill allowing hedgehogs in classrooms for educational purposes.

Let’s say it passes. What sort of care does this little hairbrush with eyes and a nose require? An open-aired roomy cage with a “hide box”, proper nesting materials (litter), an exercise wheel (unwired), plenty of fresh water and a diet of cat/kitten food or commercial hedgehog food. In captivity, a well-cared for hedgehog can live up to five years. The International Hedgehog Association web site www.hedgehogclub.com provides additional care information.

Despite the outcome, the process itself has taught these kids valuable lessons not only in responsible pet ownership but how government works. Some may argue a battle over hedgehogs is a waste of legislators’ time. I disagree. The class has a valid argument and deserves to be heard. One day they may be on the other side of the desk at the state capitol and draw upon this experience to tackle issues of far greater consequence. I wish them all the luck!